Case

IDA strengthens transparency, oversight and security with Enforce365

Automation enhances IT operations, facilitates targeted security and compliance efforts, and ensures peace of mind for members.

Updated and efficient IT security, along with a strong focus on compliance, are cornerstones of the digital strategy for IDA, the Danish trade union for engineers, scientists, and IT professionals.

Beyond the regulatory requirements that IDA must comply with when handling sensitive personal data, the organization’s 166,000 members – many of whom are IT and security experts – demand high security and confidentiality standards.

To address these challenges, IDA has chosen Enforce365 as a central tool to ensure oversight, correct and updated configuration, and to prioritize security measures within Microsoft 365, which serves as the primary platform for data and rights management at IDA.

Continuous improvements through automated processes

“Enforce365 has helped us structure and streamline our efforts on the Microsoft 365 platform at a level which would not have been possible to handle manually,” says Jesper Brink Sørensen, IT Service Operations Manager at IDA.

“We plan our Microsoft 365 tasks in 14-day sprints, implementing at least one – and often several – security measures every two weeks based on recommendations from the system. This allows us to continuously improve our setup, which is an absolute priority for us,” he notes.

Enforce365 continuously analyzes IDA’s specific Microsoft 365 configuration and provides prioritized recommendations tailored to the organization’s needs. Furthermore, the tool enables benchmarking of security and compliance using dashboards and actionable plans. Additionally, Enforce365 allows IDA to monitor and optimize the configuration as new features and security requirements are introduced by Microsoft.

Meeting the demands of IDA members

“Many of our members are experts in technology and security, and they have very high expectations for our IT setup and how we handle their data. It keeps us on our toes, knowing we’re being evaluated every day by some of the sharpest minds in the country,” says Jesper Brink Sørensen.

“In this respect, Enforce365 plays a key role in ensuring that our security and compliance on Microsoft 365 are always up to date—and that we can document it when members ask us to. Which they do, and fairly often,” he adds.

The tool also ensures that IDA’s Microsoft 365 solution is optimally configured according to best practices and current requirements.

IDA aims to strike a balance between security and compliance, as well as the effort required from the IT department, users, and members to achieve it. The organization’s target is to maintain standardized security and compliance scores on Microsoft 365 between 85% and 90%.

“If we fall below this level, we face unacceptable security risks. But if we exceed it, access to important services and tools becomes overly cumbersome for users. That’s why we’ve chosen this range as our benchmark, and Enforce365 helps us stay on course,” says Jesper Brink Sørensen.

Efficiency and flexibility with minimal resource input

At the same time, automation in Enforce365 saves time and resources, helping IDA navigate the many possibilities and settings across Microsoft 365. While the platform is versatile and robust, it’s also extremely complex to configure and oversee manually, especially as Microsoft continuously introduces updates and new functionalities.

“Enforce365 helps us maintain an overview of our specific, current configuration and prioritize which actions are most time-critical to implement and which can wait. This helps us stay organized and focus our efforts,” says Jesper Brink Sørensen.

“The tool acts as a continuous partner for security and optimization, ensuring that our Microsoft 365 setup is always up to date, maintains the desired security level, and is correctly configured. Ultimately, it makes compliance easier and supports IDA’s overarching goal of delivering secure and first-class IT services to members and employees,” he concludes.